Once Stumbling, Nets Are Surging Into Playoffs

The Nets on Tuesday clinched their second consecutive playoff berth, beating the energetic but depleted Houston Rockets, 105-96, at Barclays Center. While securing a postseason ticket seemed to be a formality, it was a testament to how good the Nets have become these last three months.

Their strong play since the new year has turned their early-season struggles into a faraway memory.

The Nets extended their home winning streak to 14 games, setting a franchise record. They also snapped a 14-game losing streak against the Rockets. The Nets remained in fifth place in the Eastern Conference, one and a half games behind the Toronto Raptors and the Chicago Bulls with nine games left to play.

The postseason berth was not the only reason to celebrate. Before the game the N.B.A. announced that Jason Kidd had won the Eastern Conference coach of the month award after guiding the Nets to a 12-4 record in March. Kidd, who won the honor in January, became first coach in franchise history to win the award twice in one season.

Kidd deflected the accolades before the game, saying that his players deserved them. The players then went out and validated his praise.

The Nets shot 53 percent from the field and limited the Rockets to 38.1 percent. Joe Johnson led all scorers with 32 points, and five other Nets scored in double figures.

Johnson said this was the strangest season he had experienced.

“We had a moment where we were just really, really terrible,” he said. “And then we’ve got moments when we’ve been pretty good. So I’m glad the better part came in the second half, and we’re going to just keep climbing.”

Mason Plumlee threw down a two-handed dunk with 1 minute 43 seconds remaining that stretched the Nets’ lead to 12 and signaled the game’s end.

Kidd’s honor was yet another reminder of how drastically the Nets’ fortunes have changed. The Nets went 10-21 through December, and impatient critics wondered whether Kidd was out of his depth. They are 30-12 since the new year.

Kidd rarely offered much insight into the Nets’ struggles as they were happening, but hindsight and prolonged success have seemed to free him up to be a bit more introspective.

“When you look at the high expectations, the new faces, maybe the new defensive schemes, offensive schemes, guys just finding their way, being traded for the first time, there’s a lot of different things that are going on, and you’ve got to put the pieces of the puzzle together,” Kidd said about the early season. “You sprinkle in some injuries. It’s just a matter of time, being patient.”

Asked if there were specific factors had hastened the turnaround, Kidd said the moment that center Brook Lopez, the Nets’ most reliable scorer, was ruled out for the season with a broken foot “changed the whole landscape of who we were going to try to be and who we are now.”

The Nets were forced to use a small lineup, and things clicked. Kidd said, “We found our identity at that point.”

It was on display Tuesday. Johnson had 30 points before the end of the third quarter, benefiting from the Nets’ crisp ball movement. With the Rockets’ urging, the action accelerated at times to a breakneck pace.

Kidd said the Nets knew what was coming, that the Rockets’ offensive philosophy was easy to break down, if hard to stop.

“There are three spots on the floor they’re going to shoot from — behind the arc, layups and free throws,” Kidd said.

This was not a full-strength Rockets team, though. Dwight Howard, Houston’s star center, was out and listed as day to day with a sprained left ankle. Patrick Beverly, the starting point guard, is out indefinitely after sustaining a torn meniscus in his right knee.

James Harden scored 26 points for the Rockets, making 16 free throws. Omer Asik had 23 rebounds. Jeremy Lin, who received some warm cheers from the crowd, scored 16 points, as did Chandler Parsons.

But the Nets reined in the Rockets when it counted, and had a playoff berth as a reward.

REBOUNDS

The Nets were missing three key players Tuesday. Kevin Garnett missed his 17th consecutive game because of back spasms. Andrei Kirilenko missed his fifth straight contest with a sprained left ankle, and Marcus Thornton sat out with a sore lower back and tailbone.

A version of this article appears in print on , on Page B13 of the New York edition with the headline: Once Stumbling, Nets Are Surging Into Playoffs. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe